Mesa MkIII - your thoughts

[aside]

Hey guys,

I'm looking for an alternatively voiced rock/metal amp to my more Marshally collection. Spotted this one down under:

http://www.greatguitars.com.au/1986.Mesa.Boogie.MK111.head.htm

Yes pricing down here is insane, this equals $2800 USD but ignoring that...

Can't try before buy unfortunately so wondering who's owned one and some general chat. I've played a few Marks but never a III, and the purple/red/green thing confuses things even more.

Do they rock? Are they relaible> Can they do the IIc+ chug thing or what?

thanks

 

[thrashinbatman]

The III is fantastic, probably the underrated sibling in the Mark series. I'd definitely recommend looking into the stripes, because there is a meaningful difference between the different stripes tonally. Look for whatever stripe sounds the best to you (some are more aggressive, some are less, some were manufactured relatively close to the IIC+ and share a lot with them, some are brighter, some are not, etc) and get that. If you need versatility, the III will struggle without mods, but if you need clean and chunk, it's got that.

 

[JimAnsell]

I love em. Any sound you want.
my fav amp, the mark IVa is like a tightened up mark III with better switching options.

 

[Markedman]

Insane price, these sell for less than $1,000.00. I've never paid over $550.00 for the three I've owned.

Great amp and it will have parking your Marshall, but don't over pay!

 

[Racerxrated]

Any Mark is a nice addition and a cool change up to your Marshalls. They will be thick and saturated, and boosts are not needed but can be used to boost in some upper mids which is what I do for a little more cut. The Mark 3 R2 is not a replacement for a classic Marshall tone..but the lead and clean are nice.

It won’t have the clarity of a good Marshall and a boost, the exception being a 2C+ which rivals any amp in the clarity dept. An 86 might mean it’s a black/no stripe which could have the leftover C+ PT, making it the closest III to the C+ in tone.

Marks have a thickness and syrupy lead tone that is unique and enjoyable; they are a cool addition to a Marshall collection. I have 3 Marshall’s and a C+..they are more different than similar, equally fun to play.

 

[Tone Monster]

I had a red stripe that sounded as good or better than the IIC+ I owned. More aggressive.

 

[aside]

Thanks for the input guys.

Tone Monster - where does your Mk V 25 fit into this? That's another amp I can find locally.

 

[Tone Monster]

Thanks for the input guys.

Tone Monster - where does your Mk V 25 fit into this? That's another amp I can find locally.

I love it. Highly recommend if you’re a bedroom player. Awesome crunch.

 

[dsquared]

I had a red stripe that sounded as good or better than the IIC+ I owned. More aggressive.

Same here. I bought and sold multiple IIC+s but I still have a red stripe. My favorite Mesa.

 

[MetalHeadMike]

I had a red stripe that sounded as good or better than the IIC+ I owned. More aggressive.

Same here. I bought and sold multiple IIC+s but I still have a red stripe. My favorite Mesa.

Just goes to show ya how subjective this all is. Most people can't stop raving about the IIC+ being king and here you are happier with the MKIII. I had a Diezel Dmoll that I listed just one day after receiving it. Countless threads and everyone praised the amp...I couldn't get rid of it fast enough.

 

[Wizard of Ozz]

Love them. Better than the MKIIC+ for metal. I own several MKIIIs and 2 MKIIC++s.

 

[Beyond Black]

I just bought a Red Stripe ++ from Flavatrocious and I love it. I’ve never had a stock Mark III, so I can’t compare the two, but I can turn off the ++ mod and get it closer to stock, and it still kills. It’s very raw and pissed, with amazing saturation with the pull knobs engaged, that literallly drips in tone. It’s like a fatter, more raw version of my Mark IV. It’s become one of my favorite amps ever.

 

[braintheory]

I just bought a Red Stripe ++ from Flavatrocious and I love it. I’ve never had a stock Mark III, so I can’t compare the two, but I can turn off the ++ mod and get it closer to stock, and it still kills. It’s very raw and pissed, with amazing saturation with the pull knobs engaged, that literallly drips in tone. It’s like a fatter, more raw version of my Mark IV. It’s become one of my favorite amps ever.

I could be wrong, but I believe with the ++ mod you’re just switching between + and ++ modes rather than turning off the mod, so it’ll never really be exactly like a stock mark iii. At least that’s how my 3 mark modded colis are. On mine pull rhythm pushed in is like a iic+ and pulled is like a iic++. I don’t miss the stock sound of any of them. That’s one nice advantage of iii’s vs a c+ where with the latter you can only have a + or ++. You can’t have both like on a iii++

Either way, I agree that mark iii’s are amazing and always felt they were the best amp out there for the money and just killer amps regardless of price

 

[aside]

Excellent info, I love this place
I need to figure out a fair price, what would you offer? I believe a number of options were available, this one seems to be well featured.

Also I’m not sure if the whole wicker / hardwood thing adds much to the value?

 

[Snave]

Purple isn't the most desirable stripe, and an amp that old (1986) almost certainly needs service. These aren't simple amps and you don't have the luxury of Mike B. working on it, so that's something to consider.

It's worth half their asking price at most, and even that is fairly steep. If one of your Marshalls has an effects loop, you'd be better off importing a Studio or Quad Preamp and saving a lot of money. A Peavey Rockmaster preamp is a good substitute—very metal tone with a similar voicing.

 

[aside]

Yeah I foolishly past on a quad preamp a few months back

My other option is an F100 head for a more reasonable 650 USD. I know, I know...

 

[Wizard of Ozz]

Yeah I foolishly past on a quad preamp a few months back

My other option is an F100 head for a more reasonable 650 USD. I know, I know...

Get the MKIII.

 

[Racerxrated]

I had a red stripe that sounded as good or better than the IIC+ I owned. More aggressive.

Same here. I bought and sold multiple IIC+s but I still have a red stripe. My favorite Mesa.

Just goes to show ya how subjective this all is. Most people can't stop raving about the IIC+ being king and here you are happier with the MKIII. I had a Diezel Dmoll that I listed just one day after receiving it. Countless threads and everyone praised the amp...I couldn't get rid of it fast enough.

The two I owned were a purple and a red, at the same time with my first C+ which was an SRG. It was such a huge difference, the III was almost like a different amp. They sound good, but then I fired up the C+(it had just been upgraded by Mike B) and it just outshined both IIIs in every way possible. If clarity and articulation is important the C+ has almost a 'blanket off the speakers' effect when you compare it to a III.
That was my experience anyway, YMMV.

 

[braintheory]

I had a red stripe that sounded as good or better than the IIC+ I owned. More aggressive.

Same here. I bought and sold multiple IIC+s but I still have a red stripe. My favorite Mesa.

Just goes to show ya how subjective this all is. Most people can't stop raving about the IIC+ being king and here you are happier with the MKIII. I had a Diezel Dmoll that I listed just one day after receiving it. Countless threads and everyone praised the amp...I couldn't get rid of it fast enough.

I don’t recall much praise for the dmoll. I didn’t care for it either. Was like the Hebert, but nowhere near as good from what I remember when trying it

 

[Beyond Black]

I just bought a Red Stripe ++ from Flavatrocious and I love it. I’ve never had a stock Mark III, so I can’t compare the two, but I can turn off the ++ mod and get it closer to stock, and it still kills. It’s very raw and pissed, with amazing saturation with the pull knobs engaged, that literallly drips in tone. It’s like a fatter, more raw version of my Mark IV. It’s become one of my favorite amps ever.

I could be wrong, but I believe with the ++ mod you’re just switching between + and ++ modes rather than turning off the mod, so it’ll never really be exactly like a stock mark iii. At least that’s how my 3 mark modded colis are. On mine pull rhythm pushed in is like a iic+ and pulled is like a iic++. I don’t miss the stock sound of any of them. That’s one nice advantage of iii’s vs a c+ where with the latter you can only have a + or ++. You can’t have both like on a iii++

Either way, I agree that mark iii’s are amazing and always felt they were the best amp out there for the money and just killer amps regardless of price

No, you’re right, and that’s what I meant. I can turn off the ++ and make it a +, but not stock. I believe the + alone is smoother and darker than stock, right?